For me, Standard 5: Productivity and Professional Practice is the standard I feel I have really been forced to learn about and improve upon over the past 6 months. As I have stated before, I recently obtained a district level Technology Integration Facilitator position, up from a Campus Instructional Technologist (C.I.T.) in a different district.
After having read Standard 5 and reflecting upon my role as a C.I.T., I understand that the main areas of concentration for that position (at least in the district I was in) were to “Identify resources and participate in professional organizations supporting my own professional knowledge and professional practice” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 110). Most of the time, I found myself “Conducting small-scale professional development activities for others or redelivering professional development programs that someone else designed” (William & Redish, 2009, p. 110) on my campus.
In my new position as a district level Technology Integration Facilitator, I quickly found myself having to take more of a Leadership role as it pertains to Standard V. In this new district, the facilitators are given the responsibility of designing, developing, and delivering our professional development courses. “The term [learning curve] is often used to convey the relationship between experience and efficiency” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 103) and is a good way to describe the relationship between my personal level of experience and efficiency in this area.
When I was asked to create course material for several different Professional Development trainings to be offered this year, I found myself in a state of shock and fear. Through my studies during this Master’s program, I was made well aware that “effective professional development is organized around real problems of practice, provide access to outside resources and expertise, draws support from the community, and is modeled around adult learning theories” (Mouza, 2002-2003, p. 273). Therefore, it goes without saying, I was most definitely out of my comfort level and experience. I have managed to complete 4 sets of training materials thus far, and am currently working on three others. As I develop my course material, at the forefront of my mind is the strength of the ATRL model of professional development, which is that “It does not remove “learning” from “teaching” but focuses on both as organic and complementary processes” (Burns, 2002, p. 302). I am hoping to receive feedback on my completed courses soon.
Regardless of my position in the field of instructional technology, I know and understand that the responsibility of both technology leaders and facilitators is to help transform schools and professional learning communities by helping others use technology to enhance productivity and professional practice. As described by Jo Williamson and Traci Redish, “Technology facilitators and leaders play an important role in transforming schools into modern, efficient learning organizations (2009, p. 114.) This is a responsibility that I take seriously and really seem to enjoy.
References Burns, M. (2002). From compliance to commitment: Technology as a catalyst for communities of learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 84(4), 295-303.
Mouza, C. (2002/2003). Learning to teach with new technology: Implications for professional development. Journal for Research on Technology in Education, 35(2), 272-89.
Williamson, J & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE’s technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
After having read Standard 5 and reflecting upon my role as a C.I.T., I understand that the main areas of concentration for that position (at least in the district I was in) were to “Identify resources and participate in professional organizations supporting my own professional knowledge and professional practice” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 110). Most of the time, I found myself “Conducting small-scale professional development activities for others or redelivering professional development programs that someone else designed” (William & Redish, 2009, p. 110) on my campus.
In my new position as a district level Technology Integration Facilitator, I quickly found myself having to take more of a Leadership role as it pertains to Standard V. In this new district, the facilitators are given the responsibility of designing, developing, and delivering our professional development courses. “The term [learning curve] is often used to convey the relationship between experience and efficiency” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 103) and is a good way to describe the relationship between my personal level of experience and efficiency in this area.
When I was asked to create course material for several different Professional Development trainings to be offered this year, I found myself in a state of shock and fear. Through my studies during this Master’s program, I was made well aware that “effective professional development is organized around real problems of practice, provide access to outside resources and expertise, draws support from the community, and is modeled around adult learning theories” (Mouza, 2002-2003, p. 273). Therefore, it goes without saying, I was most definitely out of my comfort level and experience. I have managed to complete 4 sets of training materials thus far, and am currently working on three others. As I develop my course material, at the forefront of my mind is the strength of the ATRL model of professional development, which is that “It does not remove “learning” from “teaching” but focuses on both as organic and complementary processes” (Burns, 2002, p. 302). I am hoping to receive feedback on my completed courses soon.
Regardless of my position in the field of instructional technology, I know and understand that the responsibility of both technology leaders and facilitators is to help transform schools and professional learning communities by helping others use technology to enhance productivity and professional practice. As described by Jo Williamson and Traci Redish, “Technology facilitators and leaders play an important role in transforming schools into modern, efficient learning organizations (2009, p. 114.) This is a responsibility that I take seriously and really seem to enjoy.
References
Burns, M. (2002). From compliance to commitment: Technology as a catalyst for communities of learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 84(4), 295-303.
Mouza, C. (2002/2003). Learning to teach with new technology: Implications for professional development. Journal for Research on Technology in Education, 35(2), 272-89.
Williamson, J & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE’s technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.